Tarkio Police Department has a new reserve officer, TeeJay Thomas. Officer Thomas began his duties in May.

There’s a new man of the law in town as the Tarkio Police Department has welcomed a much-needed reserve officer to the force. TeeJay Thomas hails from Oregon, Missouri, but is originally from Omaha, Nebraska.

Thomas was a United States Army Paratrooper for 31 years. He was in Nebraska on September 11, 2001, when he woke up and watched the coverage of the first twin tower engulfed in flames and then saw the second plane fly across the television screen and hit the second tower. He was then called to guard the armory and he and the others worked in 12 hour shifts until everything calmed down. A few years later, he was serving in Iraq in 2004 and then Kuwait from 2004-2005. He joined the Army Special Operations Unit and was deployed to Afghanistan in 2011. He was “in country” when the unit was woken up and notified that Bin Laden had been found and executed. As someone who has despised bad guys since childhood, seeing one get his due, while in the same country, was something to behold. Following his service overseas, Thomas joined the Army National Guard and currently serves with the 129th Field Artillery.

Besides enforcing the freedoms of the United States, Thomas is also not a rookie to enforcing the laws and freedoms of individuals in municipalities as well. He became an officer in 2015 and worked with the Veterans Affairs in Omaha. Later he became a Holt County, Missouri, dispatcher before attending the Missouri Western State University Police Academy in St. Joseph. He worked as a Holt County deputy upon graduation before taking a job at Cooper Nuclear Station in Brownville, Nebraska, as a water purification specialist. Although he still works at Cooper, law enforcement has always been a part of him. “I’ve always wanted to be there for people, be the calm and get people through what is sometimes the worst day of their life.” So when Tarkio Police Chief Tyson Gibbons approached him about becoming a reserve officer for Tarkio, he jumped at the chance at continuing to help, no matter where that may be. Serving to protect the innocent hasn’t just been law enforcement work. TeeJay was also a foster parent for seven years, taking care of 27 children in their time of need, no matter how long that was for. Providing them a safe space and love was his way of giving back for the help he received as a child. He joked that before he had his son, Jaden, he was not exactly fond of children. But then his son was born and his whole perspective changed, and he wanted to do more for kids who may not have the parental guidance and care that his son had.

Now that he is serving the town of Tarkio, TeeJay is focusing his duties on traffic patrol. He’s only written two tickets since he began in May of this year, but he has pulled several people over to remind them to obey the law. He said he’s not a stickler and gives people second chances, but if they break the law they will probably find his lights flashing in their rearview mirrors.

Speaking of lights, TeeJay also owns and operates Midwest Lighting Solutions and has installed new running lights on Tarkio’s K9 vehicle. When not working in this electrical capacity, or at Cooper, or serving Tarkio as an officer, he also works security for the Kansas City Chiefs. Officer Thomas is enjoying getting to know Tarkio’s residents and says although he doesn’t live here, he considers Tarkio his home, too.